Why international exchange programs would be effective for further internationalization of Nazarbayev University?

According to the OECD report on higher education in Kazakhstan (2007), internationalization of our higher education is essential for our country to be competitive (p. 141). Today, Kazakhstani people can be proud of Nazarbayev University as a good example of internationalized higher education institution: firstly, approximately 75% of NU faculty is international; secondly, a lot of research activities are taking place in collaboration with NU international partners - famous schools, such as University of Wisconsin-Madison and University of Pennsylvania; lastly, all our programs are developed in the mainstream of international curriculum and they are mainly taught in English. In this post, I would like to suggest another step which our university could make towards further internationalisation.

In my opinion, one effective action which can strongly increase the level of internationalization at Nazarbayev University is international exchange programs. International exchange programs is one of the core elements of internationalization (OECD, 2007) and, in my opinion, Nazarbayev University has perfect environment for successful international collaboration at a student level.

Firstly, our current level of internationalization in teaching and research can be a good platform for accepting students from other higher education institutions and sending our students for exchange programs in other schools. The presence of international faculty members and the status of English as a main language of instruction in our university allow us to increase the level of participation in exchange programs to the maximum extent. International teachers and English language are two factors which will make studying at NU for inbound exchange students an enjoyable and successful experience.

Secondly, the Kazakh dimension of curriculum would make studying at our university an interesting experience for foreign exchange students. They would learn about our country’s history and its development and share this knowledge back in their home, which will positively influence on the image of our country abroad. In addition, NU students would have great experience of co-studying with foreign students and learning about other cultures while staying at home. So far, curriculum at Nazarbayev University is not fully used to increase students’ and teachers’ participation in international activities. Although collaboration with international schools exists in our university, it is not developed to its full capacity.

In conclusion, I would like to state that Nazarbayev University is a perfect school for increasing Kazakhstani international exposure in the area of education. Our university has great conditions including internationalized curriculum with introduction to Kazakh culture and international faculty, so increasing participation of our university is an easy action for implementation, and at the same time it is an effective measure towards internationalization.



References:

1. OECD and the IBRD/the World Bank. (2007). Internationalisation. In Higher education in Kazakhstan (pp. 142-162).